In recognising the central part women play in water and in the sector, on the occasion of International Women’s Day (IWD), the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) has interviewed some remarkable women in the water community across its Network on their involvement in water/water issues, obstacles they have faced as women and also their recommendations to other women.
Here are GWP-C's interviews with these #women in #water:
Honourable Susanne Camelia-Römer
Minister of Traffic, Transport and Urban Planning of Curaçao
Country of Birth: Curaçao
Susanne Camelia-Römer is the Minister of Traffic, Transport and Urban Planning of Curaçao. She is responsible for the planning of the public space; mobility; road, air and maritime security and safety; public works; management of land, government building and monuments; housing, postal services, (tele) communications; and meteorology in her country.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
I have never found more challenges because of my gender; I just do what I think is needed.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
I did not feel challenges based on gender but there are many challenges based on climate change, necessary policy innovations, shortage of personnel and budget, lack of long-term policy and programmes. I overcome these challenges by working with a great team, my ministry, other ministers and stakeholders.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
Try to inspire others to work with you, and make sure everyone is included. Together we can achieve more.
Please feel free to share any other information about your work in water.
Water as a vital human necessity is a great example of an issue which requires different sectors to work together to guarantee sustainable water use and a clean and healthy environment. Public works, housing departments, the department of health, agriculture, the seawater Desalination Company and general public, all have to work together. This provides a great basis for an Integrated Water Management Approach and a great example for general government.
Ivanira Da Costa James
Operations and Maintenance Manager at the Dominica Water and Sewerage Company Limited (DOWASCO)
Country of Birth: Brazil
Brazilian-born Ivanira Da Costa James began working at the Dominica Water and Sewerage Company Limited (DOWASCO) from 1997 where she started as an Engineer and is now the Operations and Maintenance Manager of the organisation. DOWASCO’s slogan is “Our Water, Our Treasure, Our Life!” Ivanira is very active in working on water issues and water management in the Commonwealth of Dominica.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
At the very early stage of employment as a female engineer in the male dominated field of engineering, my work began firstly by having to cope with negative comments. My capacity to perform was put into question. For a short time, after a few months of familiarisation particularly during field work, I noticed that the comments were changing in tone and content. I climbed storage tanks, against the “caring” advice of male staff. When told to wait in the vehicle at the end of vehicular access to visit water intakes and through difficult terrain (up steep mountain slopes and down to river valleys), I walked the walk. One senior manager remarked that “I will never judge a woman at work again”. During field visits, the comments changed to “don’t help her! She can handle it, you see what I am telling you”, when I was first to return from the valleys. The challenges continued all the same because I was the first woman in a man’s world, but by then I could shake off any comment or attitude that I perceived to be gender biased and insensitive.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
At the technical level, my work involved designing and supervising the implementation of new water systems in remote areas (villages not previously served with potable water); extending existing systems due to increasing demand and renovating broken and worn-out segments of the major water networks in Dominica. For example, the island has a population of fewer than seventy thousand (70,000) residents but has a total of fourty-three (43) water systems. The largest system serves one-third (⅓) of the population. Ninety-nine percent (99%) of the population is served with potable water. In this regard, as an engineer at DOWASCO, my department was at the forefront of public criticisms if there were shortages or insufficient supplies to residents. Among my duties therefore, was to convince and demonstrate to management and subordinates that I had the right strategies to address all issues relating to water supply and quality in a very efficient manner. A number of years followed; I then became the public face and name of DOWASCO. Engineers from different fields, officials of government, counterparts regionally and local residents on any issue, would first contact Mrs. James. So I gained the confidence of all stakeholders through hard work, honesty and integrity. When the occasion arose, I became the first female Operations and Maintenance Manager at DOWASCO.
Paradoxically, as Operations and Maintenance Manager, my scope of work broadened to counsellor of the eighty-three (83) male folks under my supervision. Family matters, friendships and general home issues affecting staff performance had to be addressed. My perspective as a woman greatly helped in this regard. Laughingly, I became their confidant and mother in some instances. More importantly, the staff was sensitised to gender mainstreaming through workshops and seminars.
The rough and tumble of coping with a predominantly male environment never ends, but I can comfortably say, women are making a difference in the field of engineering. In the past decade, DOWASCO has added a second female engineer to its staff. After two (2) decades of work as the female engineer at DOWASCO, I think a new normal to have female engineers at our water company is firmly entrenched.
However, critical factors for my success were my prayerful reverence to God, the support of my family, in particular my husband and the colleagues at the management level who had the confidence in me and who were of the view that it was necessary to change the perception that engineering is a male only environment in Dominica.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
- To other women, I recommend the following:
- Be professional at all times, detach yourself from emotions and concentrate on the job at hand;
- Be sensitive to those around you;
- Embrace your career goals but be patient while you learn coping mechanisms at the workplace;
- Share successes with your colleagues and subordinates;
- Play by the rules and respect yourself (earn your respect);
- Be kind and compassionate but stern when it matters;
- Never be afraid of trying out new ideas through continuous learning;
- Cultivate sincerity and confidentiality;
- Pay little or no heed to “small chat;”
- Receive a compliment positively regardless of who it came from;
- Demonstrate sound character…be a strong Caribbean woman; and
- Always maintain a proper dress code.
Alexandra Pierre
National Coordinator of the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN)-Haiti
Outreach Coordinator of Reef Check
Consultant for the Environment Ministry on Marine Biodiversity
Country of Birth: Haiti
Alexandra Pierre is the National Coordinator for the Haiti Chapter of the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN). She is also the Outreach Coordinator of Reef Check and a Consultant for the Environment Ministry on Marine Biodiversity in Haiti.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
My principle difficulty revolves around the fact that, in the Haitian workplace, many people still have a conventional view of the role of women. For example, during planning meetings, officers who do not know me, often assume that I am a secretary and are surprised when I give interventions as a technician and a consultant. In addition, during field visits, especially at the beaches, I am often mistaken as a model preparing for a seaside photo shoot. I often smile when people come to understand, that the heavy equipment I am carrying is for biological assessments of the marine ecosystems. I can see their discomfort, change in approach and attitude when they realise that they are interacting with a professional field scientist and not a swimsuit model.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
My peers from my college and my teachers do respect me because they know my academic achievements and technical capability. But, it is not the same reality with some co-workers, simply because you don’t carry your curriculum vitae (CV) on you everywhere you go. So it requires a bit of self-control to surmount provocations. I have instances where I am purposely called with the last name of my immediate boss or where I have been threatened on the phone by anonymous callers for the tasks which have been assigned to me. I also have to be weary when I receive “innocent” invitations to diner to discuss aspects about the implementation or the funding strategies of a project etc. In order to overcome these challenges, I am trying to be smart enough to decrypt what is, and what is not work, firm and strong in my decision to always be honest and competent in my work; wise enough to diplomatically say 'no' and 'yes' while quietly building my career as a female scientist in the water sector and as a social leader fighting for youth inclusion in Haiti.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
Ladies and young girls, it is very important to always be yourself: Don’t be afraid to impose yourself, not only according to who you are but also according to what you know. It will encourage your peers from the water sector to respect you.
Be tuned into the population because behind the technicality the most adapted and sustainable solutions often come from them. Be wise enough to learn from any encountered challenging experiences, it will make you a stronger and a more balanced woman. As a member of the civil society, try as much as you can to be involved in the public institutions. It is where you can definitely make perennial changes in the local policies related to the management of the natural resources. Many times, the decision-makers do not make effective decisions for the local communities because they are not properly orientated.
Please feel free to share any other information about your work in water.
When you have a water-related job in Haiti, it immerses you into the intense cultural beliefs that underlie the true Haitian life. It is not simply about providing the water resource to the population but, it is also going into dodgy neighbourhoods, to understand the basic needs of the residents. Basically, it is either about bringing water to the people or working out the easiest way of bringing the population to the water. It is also involves waking up very early in the morning to witness the multiple traditional boats going out for fishing, the fishermen and their sons pulling their handmade nets under a burning sun, the boats coming to the city market with so few and so small fish; to finally understand the social and economic value of the biological assessment you are making as a scientist.
Anuradha Maharaj
Research Assistant at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES)
Country of Birth: Trinidad
Anuradha Maharaj is a Research Assistant for the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. This Trinidad and Tobago national is active in working on water issues in Barbados, Jamaica, Grenada and Trinidad.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
- In a world where women are viewed as commensurate with the working male, the fact still remains that there are physiological differences between the sexes. A pregnant woman, for instance, will have to be much more careful in executing fieldwork.
- Balancing the role of the woman in the home versus the working woman. The requirements and approach, I think, are worlds apart. I know of women who have opted out of having families because it will limit the time dedicated to their research.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
Constraints like #1 are out of our control, and yet has created a breeding ground for resiliency. I have learnt to follow suit by looking at, and connecting with other strong women in science who have pushed through these challenges and have become quite successful. In conversation with many of them, there is the insistence on striking a balance. They have chosen to focus on the positives and the bigger picture; something I have adapted myself to, as well.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
Honestly, focusing on the bigger picture as previously mentioned, as well as, my contribution to the region and my future generations by working in water, gives me the drive to work harder. Leaning on my work colleagues (both male and female) during challenging times has also been very helpful.
Please feel free to share any other information about your work in water.
The significance of water as the most crucial of all resources cannot be undervalued. Yet, my short stint in water studies and research has revealed that there is a gap between water research and how water is used daily. The link between the predicted decreases in precipitation for the Caribbean and the potential decline in supply needs to become ingrained in local communities in order to begin to change traditional Caribbean mindsets of water abundance and slowly establish a culture of conservation. This is where women play a crucial dual role as the main domestic water users (cooking, washing, cleaning etc.) and educators of the upcoming generation; the family unit is where I believe most of our work needs to be concentrated.
Megan Cox
Water Quality Specialist at the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH)
Country of Birth: Barbados
Megan Cox is the Water Quality Specialist at the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH). Her primary role is to support the hydrology training programme through the provision of water quality and water management training to technicians that mostly work in the hydrological sector within the Caribbean. She also supports research activities of the Institute. Currently she works on a project which is looking to establish a best practice method for measuring pesticides in soil samples taken from various sites in Barbados. This involves working with researchers from The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus to identify and learn suitable analytical methods for analysis using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry techniques. The objective is to identify the pesticides, and then to show how they are moving in the environment.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
My main challenge in field work is being able to use equipment that was designed for taller and stronger persons. I am fortunate that the environment I work in is very supportive; everyone in my department is always encouraging me to go further and try to provide support when necessary. With respect to training, I have had difficult students in the past, but I can't say for certain that the challenges were related to gender.
Megan Cox is seen here washing the soil sampling equipment from a sampling expedition.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
Field work can be challenging and sometimes dangerous. A team oriented approach makes it a bit easier to address such problems. I have tried to implement this in the work I am doing.
Tara Mackey
Research Assistant at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES)
Country of Birth: The Bahamas
Tara Mackey is a Research Assistant at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. The Bahamas national is currently active in working on water issues in Barbados.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
I am privileged to be in an amicable work environment that encourages my growth and development as a researcher in the field of water resources management. I do not face challenges such as discrimination, harassment, or glass ceilings that may be common to other women who work in a male-dominated field. However, I would say that my main challenge is admitting where I fall short and may need some help. As a woman, sometimes I think that I should be capable of handling a two or three-person task on my own or I feel as though I should not show any of my shortcomings. But I’ve come to realise that my organisation provides many resources that I can tap into so there is no need to place undue stress on myself, and also, it is okay if I confuse a wrench and a ratchet! To err is human.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
In order to overcome these obstacles, at the start of any major task, I place myself in a position to brainstorm or work alongside another person or a specific team. I also set SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely) goals and challenge myself to get into the field and see the solutions that are found behind a desk being applied to the actual pipe network.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world).
I would recommend that women, especially younger women such as myself, set their work and performance standards high but do not let it become their Achilles heel. Be open to receiving help and constructive criticism from your peers. Also, step outside of your comfort zone every once in a while as you will be made better from the exposure.
Haidy Malone Lepelblad
Policy Advisor at the Nationale Vrouwen Beweging (N.V.B) [National Women’s Movement of Suriname]
Country of Birth: Suriname
Haidy Malone Lepelblad is a Policy Advisor and is very active in working on water issues and water management in Suriname.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
In supporting the provision of safe drinking water to communities and schools in the interior of Suriname for indigenous and maroon communities, the main challenges include the underestimation of social issues related to water management and maintenance of quality in the process. Most decision-makers are mainly concerned and willing to invest in the technical aspects.
What have you done to overcome these obstacles/challenges?
Research and data collection, as well as, capacity building of local communities for more ownership and involvement in decision-making. Lobbying with government agencies for prioritisation and informed decision-making.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
Focus on the issues. Use evidence-based information during negotiations. Build trustworthy relationships and networks and lead by example.
Crystal Drakes
Research Associate at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES)
Country of Birth: Barbados
Crystal Drakes is a Research Associate at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. She is currently working on a regional project “Sustainable Water Management under Climate Change in Small Island States of the Caribbean (Water-aCCSIS Project)” which seeks to improve water management and climate change adaptation for the Caribbean.
According to Crystal, “working with the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies has truly been inspirational.” Being an economist by training, her depth of knowledge on the technicalities of water management before working with CERMES was very general. Since working with the team she has experienced a steep learning curve as it relates to water and resources management and the two-fold relationship with societal development.
What would you say are the main challenges in your work as a woman?
Working as a woman in CERMES you are treated as an equal among your male colleagues and prejudice is never a factor in daily work life. In fact, our Centre's Director, Dr. Adrian Cashman, always encourages our participation in activities and our performance is rightfully based on our potential rather than gender. CERMES has many strong, charismatic women whose professionalism is admirable and I am grateful for the support we provide to each other.
Give any recommendations to other women in similar situations (in the water world)?
To women who may have challenges in their work place, I would say to them, work hard and let it speak for itself and build a network with other women in your field who can support your professional development.
Please feel free to share any other information about your work in water.
Personally, working on the Water-aCCSIS Project has sensitised me to the urgent need to implement best practises when it comes to water management around the Caribbean. I’ve seen how critical access to clean water is amongst vulnerable groups particularly young mothers, children and the elderly. From working on the Project, I am passionate more than ever, to be an advocate for a Caribbean that is more sustainable and equitable in the future.
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